Beauty Mythbuster

November 30, 2014

There are countless beauty tips and advice that are based off clouds and skittles. When I scroll through Pinterest, I spend most of my time cringing. (Not to say it’s all wrong or bad! I like wasting my life away on Pinterest just as much as the next person.)

I like to focus on consumer education because knowledge is power–especially in the beauty world! So, I’ve picked 3 popular beauty statements that have no science or truth to them. These, actually, cause more harm than good.

1. Pores Open and Close

When I hear this, I imagine millions of tiny fish mouths opening and closing. Anything in your body that has the ability to open and close requires muscle. We have yet to discover miniature sphincters in our skin! As such, your pores cannot be stimulated or steamed into opening and closing. There’s no such thing as shrinking pores or opening pores. You can definitely hide them under foundation or blur them out with silicone-based primers! But, they’ll never change size, due to your genes.

I know, it sucks, but think about it:

A pore is the opening in your skin from the hair follicle. We have these all over our bodies, even if you might not have visible hair. (We are animals.) The only thing a pore consists off is your follicle, a gland, and hair–if present. That’s it. It has no way, or reason, to open and close. It can appear larger when debris and gross stuff get stuck inside, but otherwise, no movement.

2. Baking Soda Face Scrub

Your skin, naturally, has an acidic pH. It is low, but very important to maintain the health of your skin. It’s your skin’s way of fighting off bacteria and reducing breakouts. The pH scale ranges from 1 to 14, and for your reference point, skin pH sits between 4-5.5. (The lower the pH, the more acidic it is.) Baking soda pH is 9, which means its alkaline. (The higher the pH, the more alkaline it is.) So, if you apply something really alkaline to your face, like baking soda, you will reduce your skin’s acidity and reduce its ability to fight off bacteria. You’re just doing yourself a disfavor by increasing your chances of breaking out!

3. Lemon and Sugar Scrub

Just thinking about the sharp edges of the sugar crystals tearing through my skin makes me shudder. Just because you can feel the abrasive beads in your face scrub, does not mean it’s good. On that note, microbeads are terrible for the environment! But, what I wanted to focus on with this combo is the lemon component. Lemon is acidic, and if you apply it to your face, you’re just disrupting the skin’s natural pH. (Just like with baking soda.) The extra acid won’t necessarily kill extra bacteria. It’s most likely going to dry you out and make your skin try to overcompensate with lots oil! Also, who in the world wants to cut up their face with sugar and apply lemon juice? Ouch.

Natural doesn’t mean it’s safe. I’m all about finding natural and DIY products, but some things are just not meant to be used! And don’t worry, I’ve fallen for these as well.

Let me know if you enjoyed this and if you’d like me to pick other beauty tips to debunk! Better way, tell me some beauty tips that you know are completely wrong.

Thanks for this helpful tip, I need to make sure my scrub doesn’t contain abrasive ingredients to keep scars at bay! As for a beauty tip that’s ill-advised, I would say popping pimples! 🙂 xo~ Lenahttp://www.felinecreatures.com

Yes! Look for products that exfoliate without abrasiveness–you have a lot of options with things like glycolic acid and AHAs, and BHAs. It requires a bit more research to make sure it’s suitable for your skin, but don’t be put off by the fact that they’re called “acids”. I agree Lena! I’m so impatient with spots, but then I end up with scarring and hyper-pigmentation, and I always regret it.